Development Update #5 - Beatport, Stem Separation, Awards!

2024 has already been an action-packed year for DJ.Studio - the team has been working hard to bring a range of new features and integrations to the community. Several exciting new (and heavily requested) features also lie waiting just over the horizon…

Dive into our 5th DJ.Studio Development Update for a glimpse into what we've been up to and a sneak peek at things around the corner!

TL;DR - Development Update #5, March 2024#

• We’ve released a bunch of new features and integrations, notably Beatport Streaming, sample lanes, and improvements to our mix-sharing platform. 

• Our much-requested stem separation features are nearly ready to share with you!

• We will be attending IMS 2024! Maybe we’ll see you there?

Upcoming Features:#

Our large team of 22 people at DJ.Studio have been working super hard to continue to drive the software forward. 

We have a bunch of exciting new features that are currently being developed, and we will be able to share with you soon!

At the moment, we are working on:

• Improved beat detection AI algorithm - this will help to create a more accurate beat grid with less errors, which can work with non-quantized music. 

• Compressor and Limiter - Currently in beta, these features give DJs more control over the volume and dynamic range of individual tracks and their overall mix. 

• Stem Separation - One of the most requested features, you will soon be able to split and isolate elements in tracks, like drums, bass, and vocals. 

• Beatsource Integration - Access the huge Beatsource library for using acapellas, loops, samples, and other cool audio clips in your mix. 

• VST Support - Use your 3rd party VST plugins for processing and mastering your mix. 

• File System - We’re working on our own file system library

• A Native DJ.Studio app for sharing and playing your mixes.

You can expect to see most of these features added to DJ.Studio in the coming weeks!

Thanks for all the community input on picking and shaping these new features. We’re excited to be building an app that you all love, and helped to create with us!

Awards! #

Yay, we can now officially say that DJ.Studio is truly an award-winning DJ app!

We are proud to share that DJ.Studio has been granted 4 awards:

• Music Tech: 9/10 Choice Award

• Music Tech: Innovation Award

• Magnetic Magazine: Editor’s Choice award

• DJ Mag: Star Product

These awards mean a lot to us because they show the impact our hard work has on our community, and that the long days and nights we’ve put in are making a difference in people’s lives.

We’re mostly overjoyed to know that people love DJ.Studio as much as we do!

We’d also like to take this as an opportunity to thank our community. Without your feedback, we wouldn’t have been able to shape DJ.Studio into the awesome tool it is now - so these awards are also yours!

NEW: Beatport and Beatsource Streaming Integration#

The largest addition to DJ.Studio so far in 2024 is our Beatport Streaming integration. This collaboration has been a while in the making, and we’ve cooked up a real treat!

Beatport Streaming gives you access to the best tracks in electronic dance music with the extensive 12m+ Beatport catalog, plus ready-made playlists from their in-house experts and some of the best DJs in the industry.

You can now access the entire (enormous) Beatport Streaming library directly inside DJ.Studio, and use it to mix with any available tracks.  If you don’t have a Beatport Advanced or Professional plan, you can start an extended 60-day free trial inside DJ.Studio. This lets you try out all the features above with no restrictions!

This makes DJ.Studio even more powerful for DJs looking to discover new tracks and experiment with songs in mixes before buying them. 

Our unique ‘Legalize’ feature helps you convert the Beatport Streaming tracks to downloads, letting you unlock the full feature set to export as a MP3, WAV of Video file, and add your newly discovered favorite tracks to your Beatport account. 

This connection is even more valuable for DJs who use Beatport Streaming with their live DJ software, like in rekordbox - as you can export your DJ.Studio Beatport project as a DJ set file and then reopen it in rekordbox to mix your set live!

We also just opened our Beatsource integration in closed beta. This gives you access to an extensive catalog of 7m+ open format tracks including instrumentals & acapellas, DJ tools, radio-friendly versions, and edits - all of which can help you to create more dynamic and unique mixes. You can request access via the messenger icon in the app.

If you were around in the last few months, you probably tried our beta Sample Lane feature, which allowed you to layer in extra samples, sound effects, loops, and voiceovers. 

NEW: Sample Lanes#

You’ll be pleased to hear that this feature is now out of beta, and is stable enough to be part of the main release. 

DJs can use samples to make their mixes more unique and personal, and add a bit of a signature flair. The ability to add voice-overs is perfect for creating radio shows and podcasts.

You can find out more about this feature here: Adding Samples to Mixes with DJ.Studio

Upgraded: DJ.Studio Community Mix Platform#

We’ve spent a lot of time extending our YouTube and DJ.Studio community mix platform - the place for users to share and discover new DJ.Studio YouTube mixes. 

You now have your own DJ.Studio profile page - where you can share your mixes, add a bio, and links to other websites for your DJ portfolio. 

Check out this mix profile!

You can now also embed your YouTube mixes on other sites, making it easier for you to share your work around the internet. We also introduced a view count and ‘like’ system, helping you to get feedback.

We’re working on a commenting system, where users can write notes on each other’s mixes - allowing for some deeper community interaction. Keep an eye out for this in the coming weeks!

Coming Soon: Stem Separation!#

One of the most commonly requested features from our users is stem separation. You asked, so we listened! 

We’ve been working on a system separation system to give you the ability to split tracks into stems and isolate elements from tracks, all within the DJ.Studio timeline editor. 

This gives you more creative depth and precision compared to standard EQ isolation and helps you to make more specific and higher-quality remixes. 

We’re aiming to start testing stem separation with our users as a beta feature in the next couple of weeks… watch this space!

See it in action here: 

Closed beta: Upgraded Effects, Mastering, and Compressor!#

Many of you have requested an expanded selection of effects and a detailed mastering section.

The developers have been working hard to bring these features to the app, and things are looking good so far! We are adding a bunch of new effects to the automation tab so you can get a bit more creative with your mixes. 

A mastering tab is also being added, where users can finalize their mix with a bit of limiting and spectrum analysis, so you can get a competitive and professional final sound. 

We’ve also added a compressor control to the track tab. This lets you change the dynamic range of a track - and is useful for balancing the gain levels from song to song. 

Dynamic range is the volume distance between the loudest and quietest points on a track - tracks with more dynamic range are punchier, but often tracks are heavily compressed to compete with others and have a higher perceived loudness. 

This compresses the signal, controlling the dynamic range to your tastes. 

These features are now in closed beta: Ask the team at support@dj.studio if you want to test the new tools!

We’re Going To Ibiza! See you at IMS 2024?#

After the success of last year's DJ.Studio IMS appearance, we couldn’t resist coming back for round 2! 

IMS (International Music Summit) is a 3-day gathering of industry leaders, musicians, creators, innovators, inspirators, and party lovers! This is an opportunity for the musical community to come together, share ideas, and connect over innovations in music and technology. 

DJ.Studio will once again have a booth at IMS Ibiza in April 2024, giving more demos and meeting our lovely community. (Even a bit of dancing if we get the time!)

Come and say hi if you’re going to be there!

IMS 2023 was DJ.Studio’s first public event, so it’s coming up to our 1st birthday! What a crazy year it’s been…

New: Videos and Academy Updates!#

We’ve been busy making a whole bunch of new videos to demonstrate DJ.Studio and give you some deeper tutorials on how to get the most out of the software. 

Have a look through the DJ.Studio YouTube Channel to see what we’ve been up to. 

Some highlights include: 

• Get Ready for the DJ Booth with DJ.Studio!

• DJ.Studio X Beatport Streaming

• DJ Transition Basics with Midtown Jack

• How to Mix Drum & Bass

The DJ.Studio Academy has also been refreshed, with updated guides and some new tutorials to help you learn everything the app has to offer. 

Big Things Coming in 2024#

That's a wrap for this development update. 2024 has been off to a great start, and we’ve made a tonne of progress already. Pretty impressive considering we’re only two months into the year! 

As DJ.Studio has its 1st birthday later this year, we’re even more excited to see what the future holds for the app, team, and community, as the evolution is starting to snowball. 

We’ve made an incredible amount of progress in one year. I was looking back through our first Development Update blog from June 2023 and saw this:

It hasn’t even been a year since the first IMS summit, but the amount of progress since then has been ridiculous. Hats off to the developers, team, and DJ.Studio community - nice work. 

Many thanks to everyone who has taken part in this journey - again, we couldn’t have done it without you!

Until next time…

 ~ The DJ.Studio Team 💛